Information processing apparatus and drive control method

ABSTRACT

According to one embodiment, an information processing apparatus includes a main body, an optical disc drive provided in the main body, and a drive management module provided in the main body. The optical disc drive is configured to output an eject signal to an outside in response to an operation of an eject button. The drive management module is configured to supply power to the optical disc drive when the eject signal is received from the optical disc drive which is in a power-off state, to determine, after supplying the power to the optical disc drive, whether the optical disc drive is in a ready state or not, and to send to a signal instructing opening of a tray of the optical disc drive when it is determined that the optical disc drive is in the ready state.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.13/216,988, now U.S. Pat. No. 8,387,079, which is based upon and claimsthe benefit of priority from prior Japanese Patent Application No.2010-203645, filed Sep. 10, 2010, the entire contents of which areincorporated herein by reference.

FIELD

Embodiments described herein relate generally to an informationprocessing apparatus and a drive control method of driving an opticaldisc drive in the information processing apparatus.

BACKGROUND

In recent years, various kinds of notebook-type or laptop-type portablepersonal computers have been developed. Among such portable personalcomputers, there is a computer in which an optical disc drive fordriving media, such as a DVD (Digital Versatile Disc) and a CD (CompactDisc), is built. The housing of the optical disc drive is provided withan eject button for ejecting media. When the eject button has beenoperated by a user, a controller in the optical disc drive opens thetray of the optical disc drive. Thereby, the user can load, unload, orchange media.

In the field of portable personal computers, there has been a demand forachieving power saving of such computers. Recently, to meet the demand,a computer having a function of powering off an optical disc drive,where necessary, has been developed. In the case of resuming the use ofthe optical disc drive which has once been powered off, the user isrequired to operate, for example, purpose-specific software in order topower on the optical disc drive. However, the operation of suchpurpose-specific software may be troublesome for the user.

In addition, recently, a novel tray eject technique has been developedfor automatically opening the tray of an optical disc drive in responseto an operation of an eject button of the optical disc drive which is ina power-off state.

However, for example, when the user is moving while carrying a computer,it is possible that the arm of the user, for example, may inadvertentlycome in contact with the eject button. In this case, such a problem mayoccur that the tray of the optical disc drive is abruptly opened whenthe user is moving while carrying the computer.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

A general architecture that implements the various features of theembodiments will now be described with reference to the drawings. Thedrawings and the associated descriptions are provided to illustrate theembodiments and not to limit the scope of the invention.

FIG. 1 is an exemplary perspective view illustrating the externalappearance of an information processing apparatus according to anembodiment;

FIG. 2 is an exemplary block diagram illustrating a system configurationof the information processing apparatus of the embodiment;

FIG. 3 is an exemplary block diagram illustrating a structure example ofan optical disc drive which is provided in the information processingapparatus of the embodiment;

FIG. 4 is an exemplary flow chart illustrating the outline of theprocedure of a drive control process which is executed by theinformation processing apparatus of the embodiment;

FIG. 5 is an exemplary flow chart illustrating an example of theprocedure of the drive control process which is executed by theinformation processing apparatus of the embodiment;

FIG. 6 is an exemplary flow chart illustrating an example of theprocedure of a drive state check process which is executed by theinformation processing apparatus of the embodiment; and

FIG. 7 is an exemplary flow chart for illustrating the entirety of adrive power management process which is executed by the informationprocessing apparatus of the embodiment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Various embodiments will be described hereinafter with reference to theaccompanying drawings.

In general, according to one embodiment, an information processingapparatus includes a main body, an optical disc drive provided in themain body, an acceleration sensor provided in the main body, and a drivemanagement module provided in the main body. The optical disc drive isconfigured to output an eject signal to an outside in response to anoperation of an eject button. The drive management module is configuredto determine whether the main body is shaking or not, by using theacceleration sensor, when the eject signal is received from the opticaldisc drive which is in a power-off state, and to supply power to theoptical disc drive and send to the optical disc drive a signalinstructing opening of a tray of the optical disc drive, when the mainbody is not shaking.

To begin with, referring to FIG. 1, the structure of an informationprocessing apparatus according to an embodiment is described. Theinformation processing apparatus is realized, for example, as abattery-powerable portable notebook personal computer 10.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the computer 10, as viewed from thefront side, in the state in which a display unit thereof is opened. Thecomputer 10 comprises a computer main body (also referred to simply as“main body”) 11 and a display unit 12. A display device that is composedof an LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) 16 is built in the display unit 12.

The display unit 12 is supported and attached to the computer main body11 such that the display unit 12 is freely rotatable between an openposition where a top surface of the computer main body 11 is exposed anda closed position where the top surface of the computer main body 11 iscovered by the display unit 12. The computer 10 can operate, regardlessof whether the display unit 12 is closed or opened. In other words, evenwhile the display unit 12 is in the closed state, the computer 10 cancontinue to operate.

The computer main body 11 has a thin box-shaped casing. A keyboard 13, apower button 14 for powering on/off the computer 10, a touch pad 15 anda fingerprint sensor 17 are disposed on the top surface of the computermain body 11.

In addition, an optical disc drive 117 for driving media (optical discmedia) is provided in the computer main body 11. The optical disc drive117 is configured to be able to access various kinds of optical discmedia such as a DVD, a CD, etc. The optical disc drive 117 comprises,for example, a tray 301 on which an optical disc medium is removablymounted, an eject button 302, a spindle motor 303, and an optical pickuphead 304.

The tray 301 is attached to the housing of the optical disc drive 117such that the tray 301 may move between an inserted position where thetray 301 is inserted in the main body 11 and a projected position wherethe tray 301 is projected to the outside from the main body 11. Theeject button 302 is provided on the housing of the optical disk drive117, for example, on the outer wall of the tray 301. The eject button302 is a switch for generating an eject signal. The eject signal isgenerated in response to an operation of the eject button 302,regardless of whether the optical disc drive 117 is in the power-onstate or not.

The tray 301 is opened when the eject button 302 has been operated bythe user in the state in which the tray 301 is inserted in the main body11. In other words, when the eject button 302 has been operated by theuser, the tray 301 is projected from the inside of the main body 11 tothe outside and is moved to the projected position. Specifically, duringthe period in which the optical disc drive 117 is in the power-on state,the eject signal, which is generated in response to the operation of theeject button 302, is detected by the controller in the optical discdrive 117, and the controller opens the tray 301.

The optical disc drive 117 outputs to the outside the eject signal whichis generated by the operation of the eject button 302, regardless ofwhether the optical disc drive 117 is in the power-on state or not. Forexample, an eject signal line, which carries the eject signal, is notonly connected to the controller in the optical disc drive 117, but isalso led to the outside of the optical disc drive 117. Thereby, even inthe case where the optical disc drive is in the power-off state (alsoreferred to as “power-down state”), the eject signal can be output tothe outside.

Responding to the reception of the eject signal from the optical discdrive 117 that is in the power-off state, the system of the computer 10can execute a process for resuming the use of the optical disc drive 117(e.g. a process of supplying power to the optical disc drive 117, aprocess of sending to the optical disc drive 117 a signal instructingthe opening of the tray 301, etc.)

The spindle motor 303 is a motor for rotating the medium (optical discmedium) that is loaded in the optical disc drive 117. The optical pickuphead 304 radiates a light beam (laser beam) on the medium, and outputs adetection signal corresponding to reflective light from the medium. Theoptical pickup head 304 is moved in the radial direction of the mediumby a thread mechanism (optical pickup head moving mechanism) which isprovided in the tray 301.

FIG. 2 shows the system configuration of the computer 10.

The computer 10 comprises a CPU 111, a north bridge 112, a main memory113, a graphics controller 114, a south bridge 115, a hard disk drive(HDD) 116, an optical disc drive (ODD) 117, a BIOS-ROM 118, anonvolatile memory 119, an embedded controller (EC) 120, a power supplycircuit 121, and an acceleration sensor 124.

The CPU 111 is a processor which controls the operations of thecomponents of the computer 10. The CPU 111 executes an operating system(OS) 201 and various application programs, which are loaded from the HDD116 into the main memory 113. The application programs include a drivemanagement application program 202.

The drive management application program 202 can power off the opticaldisc drive (ODD) 117, where necessary, while the computer 10 is working.The drive management application program 202 powers off the optical discdrive (ODD) 117, for example, when the non-use state of the optical discdrive (ODD) 117 has continued for a predetermined time period or when anevent of requesting power-off of the optical disc drive (ODD) 117 hasoccurred.

When the drive management application program 202 has received the ejectsignal from the optical disc drive (ODD) 117 which is in the power-offstate, the drive management application program 202 executes a processof supplying power to the optical disc drive (ODD) 117 to automaticallypower on the optical disc drive (ODD) 117 and a process of sending asignal for instructing the optical disc drive (ODD) 117 to open the tray301, thereby to resume the use of the optical disc drive (ODD) 117.

Further, the drive management application program 202 has a function ofprohibiting the resume of the use of the optical disc drive (ODD) 117while the user is moving while carrying the computer. To be morespecific, when the drive management application program 202 has receivedthe eject signal from the optical disc drive (ODD) 117 which is in thepower-down state, the drive management application program 202determines whether the main body 11, that is, the computer 10, isshaking or not, by using the acceleration sensor 124. In other word, thedrive management application program 202 determines whether shake of themain body 11 is detected by the acceleration sensor 124. For example, ifthe main body 11 is shaking by movement of the computer 10 (e.g. themain body 11 is moved in a back-and-forth direction, an up-and-downdirection, or a right-and-left direction), the drive managementapplication program 202 determines that the user is moving whilecarrying the computer 10. In this case, the drive management applicationprogram 202 executes neither a process of powering on the optical discdrive (ODD) 117 nor a process of sending a signal for instructing theoptical disc drive (ODD) 117 to open the tray 301.

The user may close the display unit 12 while keeping the power-on stateof the computer 10 in which the optical disc drive (ODD) 117 is set inthe power-off state, and may move while carrying the computer 10 by thehand or under the arm, for instance. In this case, it is possible thatthe user's arm may advertently come in contact with the eject button302. Normally, while the user is moving while carrying the computer 10,the acceleration sensor 124 detects that the main body 11, that is, thecomputer 10, is shaking. If the computer 10 is shaking, even if theeject signal is detected, the drive management application program 202executes neither the process of powering on the optical disc drive (ODD)117 nor the process of sending a signal for instructing the optical discdrive (ODD) 117 to open the tray 301. Therefore, it is possible toprevent the optical disc drive (ODD) 117 from being erroneously poweredon, and the tray 301 from being abruptly opened, while the user ismoving while carrying the computer 10.

In addition, the CPU 111 executes a BIOS (Basic Input/Output System)which is stored in the BIOS-ROM 118. The BIOS is a program for hardwarecontrol.

The north bridge 112 is a bridge device which connects a local bus ofthe CPU 111 and the south bridge 115. The north bridge 112 has afunction of executing communication with the graphics controller 114.Further, the north bridge 112 includes a memory controller whichcontrols the main memory 113.

The graphics controller 114 is a display controller which controls theLCD 16 that is used as a display monitor of the computer 10. The southbridge 115 is connected to a PCI (Peripheral Component Interconnect) busand an LPC (Low Pin Count) bus.

The HDD 116 and ODD 117 are connected to the south bridge 115 via aserial ATA (SATA) bus or the like. The south bridge 115 includes a SATAcontroller 115A. The SATA controller 115A is a controller forcontrolling the HDD 116 and ODD 117.

The embedded controller (EC) 120 is a controller for power management.The embedded controller (EC) 120 may include a keyboard controller whichcontrols the keyboard (KB) 13 and touch pad 15. The EC 120 cooperateswith the power supply circuit 121 to power on/off the computer 10 inresponse to the user's operation of the power button switch 14. Thepower supply circuit 121 uses power from a battery 122 which is built inthe computer main body 11 or external power which is supplied via an ACadapter 123, thereby generating system power that is to be supplied tothe respective components of the computer 10. Furthermore, under thecontrol of the BIOS, the EC 120, in cooperation with the power supplycircuit 121, can power on/off only the optical disc drive (ODD) 117.Furthermore, the EC 120 has a function of detecting the above-describedeject signal which is output from the optical disc drive (ODD) 117, anda function of sending an eject signal (pseudo-eject signal) to theoptical disc drive (ODD) 117.

The acceleration sensor 124 is realized, for example, as athree-dimensional acceleration sensor. The acceleration sensor 124 candetermine whether the main body 11 is shaking or not, or in other words,can detect a movement of the main body 11 in the back-and-forthdirection, up-and-down direction, and right-and-left direction. To bemore specific, the acceleration sensor 124 detects the acceleration ofthe main body 11 in an X-axis direction, a Y-axis direction and a Z-axisdirection, and outputs acceleration data indicative of the result of thedetection.

Next, referring to FIG. 3, an example of the structure of the opticaldisc drive (ODD) 117 is described.

The optical disc drive (ODD) 117 comprises a controller 401 and a trayeject mechanism 402, in addition to the above-described spindle motor303 and optical pickup head 304. When the eject button 302 is pressed bythe user, an eject signal of, e.g. a pulse shape is generated.Regardless of whether the optical disc drive (ODD) 117 is in thepower-on state or in the power-off state, the eject signal is sent to aneject signal input terminal of the controller 401 and is also output tothe outside of the optical disc drive (ODD) 117 via an eject signalinput/output terminal 403 and an eject signal line 404. The eject signalinput/output terminal 403 is an input/output terminal which is providedon the optical disc drive (ODD) 117. The eject signal input/outputterminal 403 can bidirectionally connect the optical disc drive (ODD)117 and a host system.

During the period in which the optical disc drive (ODD) 117 is in thepower-on state, the controller 401 can detect the eject signal.Responding to the reception of the eject signal, the controller 401opens the tray 301 by controlling the eject mechanism 402.

The EC 120 is bidirectionally connected to the optical disc drive (ODD)117 via the eject signal input/output terminal 403 and eject signal line404. The EC 120 can receive the eject signal from the optical disc drive(ODD) 117 via the eject signal line 404. The EC 120 notifies, forexample, the BIOS of the reception of the eject signal. The BIOSnotifies the drive management application program 202 of the receptionof the eject signal. Thereby, the drive management application program202 can detect the pressing operation of the eject button 302. Inaddition, the EC 120 can send an eject signal (also referred to as“pseudo-eject signal”) to the optical disc drive (ODD) 117 via the ejectsignal line 403.

The optical disc drive (ODD) 117 may be configured to output the ejectsignal to the outside, only when the eject button 302 has been pressedduring the period in which the optical disc drive (ODD) 117 is in thepower-off state. In this case, although the eject signal is generated inresponse to the pressing operation of the eject button 302 regardless ofwhether the optical disc drive 117 is in the power-on state or in thepower-off state, this eject signal is output to the outside only whenthe optical disc drive 117 is in the power-off state.

Next, referring to a flow chart of FIG. 4, a description is given of theoutline of a drive control process which is executed by the drivemanagement application program 202.

The drive management application program 202 can detect, for example, incooperation with the EC 120 and the BIOS, whether the eject button 302has been pressed. When the drive management application program 202 hasdetected that the eject button 302 has been pressed, or in other words,when the drive management application program 202 has received the ejectsignal from the optical disc drive (ODD) 117 via the EC 120 and the BIOS(step S11), the drive management application program 202 determineswhether the optical disc drive (ODD) 117 is in the power-on state or not(step S12). If the optical disc drive (ODD) 117 is in the power-on state(YES in step S12), the drive management application program 202 executesno operation and finishes the process.

On the other hand, if the optical disc drive (ODD) 117 is in thepower-off state (NO in step S12), the drive management applicationprogram 202 reads acceleration data from the acceleration sensor 124,and determines, based on the acceleration data, whether the main body 11is shaking or not (step S13).

If the main body 11 is not shaking (NO in step S13), the drivemanagement application program 202, in cooperation with the EC 120,supplies power to the optical disc drive (ODD) 117 and switches thepower state of the optical disc drive (ODD) 117 from the power-off stateto the power-on state (step S14). After supplying power to the opticaldisc drive (ODD) 117, the drive management application program 202determines whether the optical disc drive (ODD) 117 has transitioned toa ready state (step S15). Whether the optical disc drive (ODD) 117 hastransitioned to the ready state can be determined, for example, by thedrive management application program 202 polling the SATA controller115A. The drive management application program 202 stands by until theoptical disc drive (ODD) 117 has transitioned to the ready state. Whenit is determined that the optical disc drive (ODD) 117 is in the readystate (step S15), the drive management application program 202 instructsthe optical disc drive (ODD) 117 to open the tray 301 (step S16). Instep S16, the drive management application program 202 instructs, forexample, the EC 120 to send the pseudo-eject signal to the optical discdrive (ODD) 117. In the meantime, instead of sending the pseudo-ejectsignal to the optical disc drive (ODD) 117, an eject command may be sentto the optical disc drive (ODD) 117 via the SATA controller 115A.

A certain fixed time is needed from when the optical disc drive (ODD)117 is powered on to when the controller 401 transitions to an operablestate. The tray 301 is not opened if the pseudo-eject signal or ejectcommand is sent to the optical disc drive (ODD) 117 before thecontroller 401 transitions to the operable state, that is, before theoptical disc drive (ODD) 117 transitions to the ready state. Such aconfiguration may be adopted that the pseudo-eject signal or ejectcommand is sent when an elapsed time from power-on of the optical discdrive (ODD) 117 has reached a predetermined standby time. In usualcases, however, the time, which is needed from when the optical discdrive (ODD) 117 is powered on to when the controller 401 transitions tothe operable state, varies depending on the kind of the optical discdrive (ODD) 117 which is mounted in the computer 10. Thus, in order toensure the adaptability to various kinds of optical disc drives (ODD),it is necessary to set the above-described standby time to a relativelylong time. However, if the standby time is set to a relatively longtime, the timing of the opening of the tray 301 would be delayed.

In the present embodiment, it is actually determined whether the opticaldisc drive (ODD) 117 is in the ready state or not. Therefore, it ispossible to send the pseudo-eject signal or eject command to the opticaldisc drive (ODD) 117 at an optimal timing.

In step S13, if it is determined that the main body 11 is shaking (YESin step S13), the drive management application program 202 executes nooperation and finishes the process.

In the flow chart of FIG. 4, the description has been given of theexample in which when the pressing operation of the eject button 302 hasbeen detected, it is determined whether the present power state of theoptical disc drive (ODD) 117 is the power-off state or not.Alternatively, the process of step S13 and the following steps in FIG. 4may be started on condition that the pressing operation of the ejectbutton 302 has been detected during the period in which the optical discdrive (ODD) 117 is the power-off state. In other words, the drivecontrol process for resuming the use of the optical disc drive (ODD) 117may be executed by using, as a trigger, only the eject signal whichoccurs during the period in which the optical disc drive (ODD) 117 isthe power-off state.

Next, referring to a flow chart of FIG. 5, a description is given of anexample of the procedure of the drive control process. The case is nowassumed in which the optical disc drive (ODD) 117 is already set in thepower-off state.

When the eject button 302 has been pressed by the user (step S101), theoptical disc drive (ODD) 117 outputs an eject signal to the outside(step S102). The EC 120 receives the eject signal from the optical discdrive (ODD) 117, and notifies the BIOS of the occurrence of the ejectsignal, for example, by supplying an interrupt signal to the CPU 111(step S103). The BIOS notifies the drive management application program202 of the occurrence of the eject signal (step S104).

Upon receiving the notification of the occurrence of the eject signal,the drive management application program 202 determines whether the mainbody 11 is shaking or not, by using the acceleration sensor 124 (stepS105). If the main body 11 is not shaking, the drive managementapplication program 202 sends to the BIOS a message (ODD ON request)requesting power-on of the optical disc drive (ODD) 117 (step S106).Upon receiving the message (ODD ON request), the BIOS requests the EC120 to power on the optical disc drive (ODD) 117 (step S107). Respondingto the reception of the power-on request from the BIOS, the EC 120supplies power to the optical disc drive (ODD) 117 and powers on theoptical disc drive (ODD) 117 (step S108). The optical disc drive (ODD)117 transitions to the power-on state (step S109).

After requesting the EC 120 to power on the optical disc drive (ODD)117, the BIOS notifies the OS that the optical disc drive (ODD) 117 hasbeen powered on (or the optical disc drive (ODD) 117 has been detected)(step S110). The OS 201 adds the optical disc drive (ODD) 117 to thelist of devices which are managed by the OS 201 (step S111), andrecognizes the optical disc drive (ODD) 117 as a device in the computer10 (step S112).

After sending the message (ODD ON request) to the BIOS, the drivemanagement application program 202 checks the state of the optical discdrive (ODD) 117 and determines whether the optical disc drive (ODD) 117is in the ready state or not (step S122). If it is determined that theoptical disc drive (ODD) 117 is in the ready state, the drive managementapplication program 202 sends an eject request message to the BIOS (stepS123). The BIOS requests the EC 120 to send a pseudo-eject signal (stepS124). The EC 120 sends the pseudo-eject signal to the optical discdrive (ODD) 117 (step S125). The controller 401 in the optical discdrive (ODD) 117 executes a tray open operation for projecting the tray301 to the outside, and opens the tray 301 (step S216).

In the meantime, prior to checking the shake in step S105, the drivemanagement application program 202 may determine whether the opticaldisc drive (ODD) 117 is in the power-off state or not. The checking ofthe shake in step S105 may be executed only when it is determined thatthe optical disc drive (ODD) 117 is in the power-off state. The EC 120may determine whether the optical disc drive (ODD) 117 is in thepower-off state or not, and may notify the BIOS of the occurrence of theeject signal, only when the optical disc drive (ODD) 117 is in thepower-off state.

Next, referring to FIG. 6, a description is given of an example of theprocedure of an ODD state check process which is executed in step S122in FIG. 5.

In order to determine whether the optical disc drive (ODD) 117 is in theready state or not, the drive management application program 202requests the BIOS to check the state of the optical disc drive (ODD) 117(step S201). The BIOS reads a status register in the SATA controller115A, checks the state of the optical disc drive (ODD) 117, and returnsinformation indicative of the present state (ready state or non-readystate) of the optical disc drive (ODD) 117 to the drive managementapplication program 202.

The status register in the SATA controller 115A includes device readydata which indicates, for example, whether the optical disc drive (ODD)117 is in the ready state or not. By reading the device ready data, thepresent state (ready state or non-ready state) of the optical disc drive(ODD) 117 can be determined.

The drive management application program 202 repeatedly requests theBIOS to check the state of the optical disc drive (ODD) 117, until it isdetermined that optical disc drive (ODD) 117 is in the ready state (stepS202).

Next, referring to a flow chart of FIG. 7, a description is given of adrive power management process which is executed by the computer 10.

When the computer 10 is powered on, the EC 120 powers on various devicesin the computer 10 (step S301). In step S301, the optical disc drive(ODD) 117 is also powered on. The CPU 111 executes the BIOS. The BIOSexecutes a power-on self test process (POST) (step S302). Then, the BIOSboots the OS 201 (step S303). After the OS 201 is booted, the drivemanagement application program 202 is automatically started (step S304).The drive management application program 202 executes the followingprocess.

When the non-use state of the optical disc drive (ODD) 117 has continuedfor a predetermined time period (YES in step S305) or when an event ofrequesting power-off of the optical disc drive (ODD) 117 has beengenerated by the user's operation (YES in step S306), the drivemanagement application program 202 powers off the optical disc drive(ODD) 117 (step S307).

The drive management application program 202 recognizes, for example,the state in which no medium is loaded in the optical disc drive (ODD)117 and the tray 301 is closed, as the non-use state of the optical discdrive (ODD) 117. If the state in which no medium is loaded and the tray301 is closed has continued for a predetermined period (e.g. oneminute), the drive management application program 202, in cooperationwith the BIOS and EC 120, automatically stops power supply to theoptical disc drive (ODD) 117 and powers off the optical disc drive (ODD)117.

A hot key operation, for instance, can be used as the user's operationfor generating an event of requesting power-off of the optical discdrive (ODD) 117. For example, the user can request power-off of theoptical disc drive (ODD) 117 by simultaneously operating a plurality ofpredetermined keys of the keyboard 13. In addition, the user caninstruct power-on of the optical disc drive (ODD) 117 by operatinganother hot key.

After the optical disc drive (ODD) 117 is powered off, the drivemanagement application program 202 restores the optical disc drive (ODD)117 to the power-on state by using, as a trigger, the operation of theeject button 302, the occurrence of an event of requesting power-on ofthe optical disc drive (ODD) 117 by the user's operation, or the startof a predetermined application program which is associated with theoptical disc drive (ODD) 117.

Specifically, the drive management application program 202 firstdetermines whether the eject button 302 has been pressed (step S308). Ifthe eject button 302 has been pressed (YES in step S308), the drivemanagement application program 202 determines whether the main body 11is shaking or not, by using the acceleration sensor 124 (step S309). Ifthe main body is not shaking (NO in step S309), the drive managementapplication program 202, in cooperation with the EC 120, executes aprocess of supplying power to the optical disc drive (ODD) 117, and aprocess of instructing the optical disc drive (ODD) 117 to open the tray302 (step S310). On the other hand, if it is determined that the mainbody is shaking (YES in step S309), the drive management applicationprogram 202 does not execute the process of step S310.

When the event of requesting power-on of the optical disc drive (ODD)117 has been generated by, for example, a hot key operation by the userin the state in which the optical disc drive (ODD) 117 is powered off(YES in step S311), the drive management application program 202, incooperation with the EC 120, executes a process of supplying power tothe optical disc drive (ODD) 117 (step S313). In addition, when apredetermined application program which is associated with the opticaldisc drive (ODD) 117 has been executed in the state in which the opticaldisc drive (ODD) 117 is powered off (YES in step S312), the drivemanagement application program 202, in cooperation with the EC 120,executes a process of supplying power to the optical disc drive (ODD)117 (step S313). The predetermined application program is an applicationprogram which is configured to operate with use of the optical discdrive (ODD) 117.

As has been described above, according to the present embodiment, thepower state of the optical disc drive (ODD) 117 can easily be restoredfrom the power-off state to the power-on state by operating the ejectbutton 302. In addition, since the power-on of the optical disc drive(ODD) 117 and the opening of the tray are prohibited when the main bodyis shaking, it is possible to prevent the optical disc drive (ODD) 117from being erroneously powered on, and the tray 301 from being abruptlyopened, while the user is moving while carrying the computer 10.

In the present embodiment, the description has been given of the examplein which the drive control process of restoring the optical disc drive(ODD) 117 from the power-off state to the power-on state in response tothe operation of the eject button 302 is executed by the drivemanagement application program 202. Alternatively, this drive controlprocess may be executed by the BIOS or the OS. In addition, the drivecontrol process may be executed by hardware, for example, the EC 120.

Besides, the presence/absence of a shake may be determined when the EC120 has received the eject signal from the optical disc drive (ODD) 117which is in the power-off state, and only when the main body 11 is notshaking, may the occurrence of the eject signal be reported to thesoftware (e.g. the BIOS, OS or drive management application program 202)which executes the drive control process.

The various modules of the systems described herein can be implementedas software applications, hardware and/or software modules, orcomponents on one or more computers, such as servers. While the variousmodules are illustrated separately, they may share some or all of thesame underlying logic or code.

While certain embodiments have been described, these embodiments havebeen presented by way of example only, and are not intended to limit thescope of the inventions. Indeed, the novel embodiments described hereinmay be embodied in a variety of other forms; furthermore, variousomissions, substitutions and changes in the form of the embodimentsdescribed herein may be made without departing from the spirit of theinventions. The accompanying claims and their equivalents are intendedto cover such forms or modifications as would fall within the scope andspirit of the inventions.

What is claimed is:
 1. An information processing apparatus comprising: amain body; an optical disc drive provided in the main body, the opticaldisc drive configured to output an eject signal to an outside inresponse to an operation of an eject button; and a drive managementmodule provided in the main body, the drive management module configuredto supply power to the optical disc drive when the eject signal isreceived from the optical disc drive which is in a power-off state, todetermine, after supplying the power to the optical disc drive, whetherthe optical disc drive is in a ready state or not, and to send to asignal instructing opening of a tray of the optical disc drive when itis determined that the optical disc drive is in the ready state.
 2. Theinformation processing apparatus of claim 1, wherein the drivemanagement module is configured to power off the optical disc drive whena non-use state of the optical disc drive has continued for apredetermined period.
 3. The information processing apparatus of claim1, wherein the drive management module is configured to power off theoptical disc drive when an event of requesting power-off of the opticaldisc drive is occurred.
 4. The information processing apparatus of claim1, wherein the drive management module is configured to determinewhether the main body is shaking or not by using an acceleration sensorin the main body when the eject signal is received from the optical discdrive which is in the power-off state, and to supply the power to theoptical disc drive if the main body is not shaking.
 5. An informationprocessing apparatus comprising: a main body; an optical disc driveprovided in the main body, the optical disc drive configured to outputan eject signal to an outside, the eject signal being generated by anoperation of an eject button regardless of whether the optical discdrive is in a power-on state or not; and a drive management moduleprovided in the main body, the drive management module configured topower off the optical disc drive, to supply power to the optical discdrive when the eject signal is received from the optical disc drivewhich is in a power-off state, to determine, after supplying the powerto the optical disc drive, whether the optical disc drive is in a readystate or not, and to send to a signal instructing opening of a tray ofthe optical disc drive when it is determined that the optical disc driveis in the ready state.
 6. The information processing apparatus of claim5, wherein the drive management module is configured to determinewhether the main body is shaking or not by using an acceleration sensorin the main body when the eject signal is received from the optical discdrive which is in the power-off state, and to supply the power to theoptical disc drive if the main body is not shaking.
 7. A drive controlmethod of controlling an optical disc drive in an information processingapparatus, the method comprising: powering off the optical disc driveconfigured to output an eject signal to an outside in response to anoperation of an eject button; supplying power to the optical disc drivewhen the eject signal is received from the optical disc drive which isin a power-off state; determining, after supplying the power to theoptical disc drive, whether the optical disc drive is in a ready stateor not, and sending to a signal instructing opening of a tray of theoptical disc drive when it is determined that the optical disc drive isin the ready state.
 8. The drive control method of claim 7, furthercomprising determining whether the information processing apparatus isshaking or not by using an acceleration sensor in the informationprocessing apparatus when the eject signal is received from the opticaldisc drive which is in the power-off state, wherein the supplying thepower to the optical disc drive is performed if the informationprocessing apparatus is not shaking.